Method for concentrating ores.



A. H. S'IEBBINS. METHOD POR GONGENTRATING ORS. APPLIGATION FILED MAY 19, 1902.

923,455. A Patented June 1,1909.

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1J1J1llt 115111111@ y j A WZ'Za/Jsy; A 1 Zge/@7? ALBERT ESTEBBINS, OF LITTLE ROCK, ARKANSAS.

' l METHOD non GoNcENTRA'rmG cans.

Specification of Letters'Patent.

v.Pat.entellInline 1519509.

Application filed Hay 19, 1902. Serial No. 107,954.

To all whom it may concemt- Beit knownthat I, ALBERT H'. STEBBINS, a citizen of the United States, residing at Little Rock, in the county of Pulaski and State of Arkansas, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Methods for Concentrating Ores, of which the following is a specification.

The invention to be hereinafter described relates to a method for concentrating ores; that is, for separating the valuable portion of ore bearing material from the accompanying impurities. It is well known that the particles forming a mass of valuableore bearing material differ in size and specific gravity and that the valuable portion of such mass consists of the particles ofrelatively greater specific gravity than the accompanying impurities; and I havel taken advantage of these known facts in devising my improved method whereby the lighter particles may be removed and the heavy or valuable particles collected and separated from the impurities.

I have found that` if a mass of finely divided or comminuted ore bearing material,

is subjected'to the action of air or fluid blasts A material, it is evident that finall there will directed through lthe mass that the said mass will become greatly agitated and the lighter particles or impurities will be carried to the top of theinass, while the heavier and valuable portion of the ore bearing material l will gravitate to the bottom, thus stratifying the mass of material with the'lighter par# ticles or waste material on top. v If when ra mass of such material is thus stratified the to strata is removed and then the material st l subjected to the action of air or fluid blasts assing through it,"further stratifica tion will take place with the lighter particles of the mass then being treated being carried to the top; thus successively ifthe mass of finely divided or comminuted material be stratified and the top strata be successively removed from any particular portion of the remain only the heavier or valua le portions ofthe ore bearing material.

With the obj ect of securing the above defined results, my invention in the present instance consists in continuously subjecting a mass ofnely divided ore or comminuted 4 material to air or fluid blasts directed through the mass from the bottom to the top thereof to stratify the material with the lighter portions on top and then insucceshaving a va sively removing the upper strata of material as the mass is moved underthe action of the air or fluidblasts, all as-Will hereinafter be more fully described andpdefinitely pointed out in the claims..

In the drawings I have shown oneform of a device suitable for performing or carrying out my method, as hereinbefore-shown and set forth, in whichl Figure 1 is a plan view of an apparatu with a portion thereof broken away to show parts beneath; and Fig. 2 is-a longitudinal central section thereof.

In the drawing, A represents any suitable form of frame upon which is supported a concentrating surface'B located a-distance above thebottom B ofthe frame A. The boxlike frame A may if desiredbe separated into separate compartments b partitions a, to which maybe connecte suitable air drums or chambers C by ipes c containing controllin Valves c and aving inlet'pi es C', from w ich it-will be seen that air or ot er fluid admitted into the drums or chambers C may be directed beneath the concentrating surface B contained within the boxlike frame A; and its force and character may be controlled by means of the valves lc.

The concentrating surface B may be of any have shown the saine as composed of sheet metal having perforations b thereof directing I the air-or other fluid currents through an over the surface of the concentrating sui-face B by thewalls of said perforations b being offset as shown at b', Fig. 2,.whereby the air or other fluid currents passing through the concentrating surface B will be directed as indicated lby vthe arrows b2.

Arranged above the concentrating surface B are a series of cutting yand conveying boards D, preferably supported from the sides of the boxlike frame A, said cu, ting and conveying boards being arranged diagonally of the concentrating surface B and inclined thereto as shown in Fig. 2, with the cutting ends d of said cutting and conveying boards nearer to the concentrating surface B than the delivery ends d2, as will4 be clearly seen from Fig. 2.

Arran ed at one end of the boxlike frame A is the feed hopper E, through which material to be treated may be fed to the concen' trating surface B and immediately adjacent the feed ho per E isa regulating chamber F Ifvef, and the ower wall of which chamber is perforated as shown at f so that .a portion of the air or fluid currents that may pass through the concentrating surface may enter the re ulating chamber F and be directed out o? the machine. e

Assuming material is fed to' the concentrati in surface B through the feed hopper E, it

Wi be apparent that the air or fluid currents first acting u on said material under the regulatingcham er F Will serve to stratify said m terial With the lighter particles on top of th mass, While the heavier particles Will under the action of gravity seek the lo'Wer vlevel next adjacent the concentrating surface B. The material thus stratified will also under' the action of the air or fluid currents as they pass in the direction ofgthe arrows b2 through the concentrating surface serve to move .the mass of material along said concentrating surface from the discharge end H, and the stratified mass meeting the cutting edge d of the rst cutting and conveying board D-that is, the one nearer the feed end of the device-Will have the upper strataf layer of particles cut from the mass as the latter passes under the cutting edge d referred to. As the mass now moves to the position between-the first and second cutting and conveying boards, represented by the numeral`2, it will be evident vthat the air or fluid currents passing through the conc-entrating surface will continue to agitate the mass so that the lighter particles still remaining in the mass will rise to the top and be themselves cut off by the second cutting iand conveying board as the mass passes thereunder.

Between the cutting edges of the first and second cutting and conveying boards the material Will bunch or accumulate by reason of the generally triangular shape of the boxlike frame A, and although the mass of material at this point Will as a Whole be of greater specific gravity than the mass first fed to the machine, yet said mass between the cutting edges dd of the first and second cutting boards contains valuelessparticles which it is desired to eliminate, and which the successive stratification by virtue 0f the air or fluid blasts passing overthe concentrating surface B will carry to the top, and as the mass passing under the second cutting .and conveying board to the position designated by the numeral 3 the top strata of this stratified "mass will be removed, so that the mass of material at the point 3 between the second and third cutting and conveying boards Will'as a Whole be of greater specific gravity than the material first fed mto the machine, or that at the position 2 between the first and second cutting and conveying boards.

Between the second and third cutting and conveying boards and their cutting edges dd the material will be again acted upony by the air or fluid currents, and owing to the shape of the boXlike frame A the material Will bunch, thus preventing too free the air or fluid currents through t e mass of material at this point, and the lighter particles of such mass will here also be carried to the top and the entire mass be stratified in a manner similar to that hereinbefore depassage of scribed until any particular mass of material be understood, of course, that my method is` not limited to any character yof machine.

From the above description it will beunderstood that my invention consists in subjecting any mass of material to the action of air or fluid currents whereby said vmass of material is stratified and moved, and While thus stratifying and moving said material the top strata thereof is successively removedso that after a certain number of eliminations of top strata by the successive operation there remains only the lower valuable portion of the material.

1t will be evident also thatl may subject different portions of the material at their diHerent positions of stratification .to blasts of air or fluid currents which differ in force so that as the specific gravity of any particular portion of the material becomes greater, the force of air or fluid currents acting thereon may be made proportionately greater in order to eect the stratification thereof.

. Having thus described my invention what 1 claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1. The method -of separatingores from their accompanying impurities, which consists in feeding the ore in such manner as to form a continuous bed traveling in one general direction, agitating and stratifying said material by passing fluid currents through said bed throughout its length and in a direction substantially parallel with the line of travel of the materlal, and causing said fluid currents to also remove the topmost stratum of each successive stratification assumed by said bed as the feed thereof progresses; and successively increasing the force of the fluid currents toward the discharge lend of said bed` 2. The method of separating ores from" their accompanying impurities, Wh1ch con.

. travel of the material, and causing said fluid impurities are removed, and successively increasing the force of the fluid currents as the 1o width ofthe bed diminishes.

ALBERI H. STEBBIN S.

In presence of W. H. AUDERICH,

J. E. LEAs.

said bed throughout. its length and in a direction substantially parallel with the line of A currents to also remove the topmost stratum of each successive stratification assumed by said bed as the feed thereof progresses, reducing the width of the bed to bunch or increase the thickness of the material as the l 

